Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley is expected to announce her candidacy for the Republican nomination for President on February 15. Sources familiar with Haley’s plans have confirmed to other outlets that Haley plans on announcing her candidacy at an event in Charleston, South Carolina, her home state.
Haley, 51, is the second prominent Republican to enter the race after former President Donald Trump announced his third bid for the Presidency in November last year.
The news of Haley’s candidacy represents a major turn-around after she declared in April of 2021 that she would not run if Trump ran for a third term. Trump for his part did reveal that Haley called him to discuss a Presidential run. “I talked to her for a little while. I said, ‘Look, you know, go by your heart if you want to run,” Trump told reporters, “She called me and said she’d like to consider it, and I said you should do it.”
Haley has ramped up her involvement in the political arena in recent weeks as speculation has grown. In a Fox News interview with Sean Hannity, Haley said “When you’re looking at a run for president, you look at two things. You first look at does the current situation push for new leadership? The second question is, ‘Am I that person that could be that new leader?’ Yes, we need to go in a new direction. And can I be that leader? Yes. I think I can be that leader.” When asked about a 2024 run.
Haley, the daughter of Indian immigrants, has previously served in the South Carolina legislature, the first female Governor of South Carolina and most recently as Former President Trump’s U.N. ambassador.